A new standard for Sega’s retro re-releases
I have a controversial statement to make: I never really “got” Sonic CD. Oh, sure, I knew how to play the game, and I certainly didn’t hate it, but it never really seemed to click with me in the same way it did with everyone else. Yeah, Sonic CD probably has the strongest art direction in the Sonic franchise, and regardless of whether you prefer the original Japanese soundtrack or the alternate North American one, the music is absolutely wonderful. But where Sonic CD always stumbled, for me, was in the meat-and-potatoes of gameplay. Level design was an over-complicated mess and the controls were nowhere near as smooth as they were in its more-accessible Sega Genesis brethren. And while the concept of time travel is an amazing gimmick and completely defines the game, it also slows the pace down to a crawl by forcing you to spend upwards of 8 or 9 minutes in a single haystack trying to find the ever elusive needle (the robot teleporter responsible for a “bad future”). While the rest of the world was celebrating Sonic CD as “the best Sonic game ever made”, I was left simply scratching my head.
It's a shame Tails isn't unlocked by default.
Enter Christian Whitehead and his “Retro Engine”: Instead of simply port an existing version of Sonic CD, Whitehead has completely rebuilt the entire game from the ground up. This has afforded Sega the opportunity to go back through and smooth over some of Sonic CD‘s rougher edges – the most dramatic to me was an improvement to how Sonic himself handles. Instead of the sometimes-clunky collision detection from the original Sonic CD, the game now finally controls like a proper Sega Genesis Sonic. This in itself goes a long way towards simply improving the overall feel of Sonic CD; you spend less time getting hung up on weird collision detection or waiting for the sluggish Spindash to rev up and more time enjoying the game itself. Of course, for purists out there who like the way Sonic CD originally controlled, there’s an option to return to the original Spindash style. Which, speaking of options, is another thing this new release gets very, very right. Since the early days of Diehard GameFan Magazine‘s audacious decision to dock nearly 30 points from the American version of Sonic CD based on the alternate choice of music (versus their perfect score awarded to the imported Japanese release), the debate has raged on as to which version of Sonic CD‘s soundtrack is better than the other. Long have fans of the game requested an option to choose between the two soundtracks, something this release finally abides by. Fans looking to indulge in nostalgia with the enjoyably cheesy “Sonic Boom” can rejoice – though for those of you out there looking for a perfect rendition of the Japanese opening song, “You Can Do Anything“, know that it has been excised of its lyrics in favor of a strictly instrumental track, with the same applying for the song that plays over the credits, “Cosmic Eternity“. It’s an unfortunate loss, but given how much else this version of Sonic CD does correctly, it’s difficult to be too angry about the change.
The unfortunate part in all of this is that, well, it’s still Sonic CD. While the game is totally playable as any other level-by-level Sonic game, that would be completely ignoring the game’s central mechanic: time travel. By traveling back to a past before Dr. Eggman conquered the planet, Sonic can permanently alter the course of history in order to create a “good future” – a timeline devoid of the evil doctor’s influence. Creating a “good future” in every level is an absolute requirement for clearing the game properly, but doing so can be an exercise in frustration. It’s a lot of wasted time to set up and execute what sounds all too simple on paper: finding a sign post to charge Sonic with time travel energy, finding enough space to get up and maintain a specific level of speed, and then finding and destroying the robot teleporter responsible for polluting the future. That last step in and of itself is quite the task, as Sonic CD‘s levels are perhaps some of the most open, non-linear stages in the entire 16-bit era of this franchise. They’re also some of the meanest; continuing where the high level of difficulty in the original Sonic the Hedgehog left off in 1991, stages in Sonic CD are thicker with enemies and other hazards compared to most other games in the franchise. It would seemingly appear that all of the annoying level design trends experienced in the Sonic Advance and Sonic Rush games were actually secretly adapted from Sonic CD, which has no qualms presenting you with a spring that will launch directly in to a bed of spikes hidden off screen, or outright punishing you for running a little too fast without knowing what’s ahead. An entire, separate review could be devoted to what an aggravating level Wacky Workbench is, as it is packed to the gills with enemies that are difficult to avoid until they’ve already hurt you and gimmicks that are specifically made to send you hurtling in the wrong direction – not even the magic of Whitehead’s “Retro Engine” can save you from its horror.
Wacky Workbench might just be the worst level in all Sonic history. (Picture from iOS version)
It would be disingenuous to say that I did not enjoy this version of Sonic CD, however. It simply proves that, despite 16-bit Sonic evangelists claiming otherwise, even the best games in the franchise have always required a bit of memorization to properly enjoy. What really matters is that Sega and Christian Whitehead have gone above and beyond to create a new version of Sonic CD that isn’t just simply “better”, it is without a doubt the definitive version of this game. Even if you already own and enjoy Sonic CD on another platform, you owe it to yourself to pick this version up. Nowhere else are you going to find a version of Sonic CD with both soundtracks, full 16:9 widescreen support, the ability to play as Tails, or improved controls. It’s a shame this generation of gaming hardware has already seen so many re-releases of the other Sega Genesis Sonic games, because I genuinely want Retro Engine versions of those entries as lovingly improved as Sonic CD is right here (and while we’re at it, how about a version of Knuckles Chaotix that’s worth playing, or an actual home port of SegaSonic Arcade?) Given that it’s priced at only $5 (or less, depending on your platform of choice), you should have more than enough reasons to buy this game – and if nothing else, do it to support more Sega games getting this kind of treatment in the future, because regardless of how much or how little you love Sonic CD, there’s no denying that this is an impressive package.
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Wacky Workbench worst level in all of Sonic History? Debatable…worst Sonic Level in CD? no doubt…it’s just too WACKY! *shot* Good review…I’m overall happy with the game just because I no longer have to plug in that waste of space known as my SEGA CD…
To be honest, I never really got into Sonic CD either, but this version looks like it won’t be a waste of time. Nice review!
Totally understand the ‘not-getting-it’ thing, same with me. But it really has changed with this update. I’ve really enjoyed every moment with it. It feels tight, it looks great, it runs smoothly and it plays well. An excellent purchase and a great job by the team and Whitehead. I’m hoping they’ll apply the same treatment in future too, anything less would be a crime. Otherwise, I hope they set him on Sonic 4:2, give it some proper physics!
^This.
Anyway, how do you get a bad future in PalmTree Panic? Iv’e tried everything I know of!
@Cold Dog – Episode 2 will still be running on the same engine as Episode 1, so no original physics…..maybe tweaking though.
Review was very well-said. Now if only the installation would work on my Android.
I agree, I’ve never really gotten it either.
For android lovers, buy the game on the market, but look for com.sega.cd online, you can download the data and slap it on your SD card under “Android>data”. If people want ill update my website allaboutsonic.com (formally freewebs.com/allaboutsonic to explain this farther.
I say the worst level honor in a Sonic game belongs to blue marine zone.
“annoying level design trends experienced in the Sonic Advance and Sonic Rush games were actually secretly adapted from Sonic CD, ”
Cute real cute but
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hspNaoxzNbs
“which has no qualms presenting you with a spring that will launch directly in to a bed of spikes hidden off screen,”
Are you talking about deliberate design or player error? If it’s the latter than the other Genesis games have plenty of parts like this.
“or outright punishing you for running a little too fast without knowing what’s ahead. ”
At around max speed Sonic CD pulls the camera back to address just that, the added 16:9 helps even more. What did Dimps do to address? Oh they added a “win” button to take care of pesky badniks in Straight Line Zone with the boost.
Making a mountain out of little things in games like Sonic CD or Sonic 2 to validate Dimp’s poor design choices is low…. The annoyances you’re talking about are few and far between, Advance 2 and Rush are a near nonstop barrage of them.
Good review, Ryan.
These days I was thinking of knuckles’ chaotix too, it is a very cool game for those who like classic sonics, and I would love to play it enhanced like CD was.
The ultimate point is that SEGA and Christian got this re-release spot on. Legitimately buying these games send a clear message to SEGA that customer demand wants this kind of deal to keep occuring. Advance series ports? SA2 pc port? Pretty Please?
So, still nothing on the Steam release date? I was hoping to get it along with the Casino Night DLC for SGHDPC on New Year’s Eve (I’m away for Christmas).
Spot on review, especially the bit about Wacky Workbench. Seriously, travelling to the past and destroying the Robot Teleporter in that level was really an excercise in frustration for me last night.
Although the overall level design is easily the weakest of the Genesis games, the boss battles are probably the strongest (apart from the last).
Still a great game, but it couldn’t hold a candle to the likes of S3&K or Sonic 2.
I don’t get it either… I need to read a walkthrough that explains what to do to get the best ending. :p
@Chocoburger
Either get every Time Stone or destroy al generators on the past of each level. I’d rather get the Time Stones if I were you.
Wacky Workbench is one of my favorite levels because of how different it is, and its hardcore trippy robotic design. to each their own
Never really “got” CD either. Never even saw it as a valid competitor to the other fan-fav: S3K. I’ve always placed it somewhere between Sonic 1 and 2 in terms of enjoyability. Only things about the game that ever really stood out to me were the special stages (hard as fuck, but oh-so fun!) and the MS race. The rest was just a cross between passable and frustrating.
But I gotta say, at the ultra-sweet $5 price point, this version of the game is an absolute gem.
Finally! Someone else who doesn’t think Sonic CD is the best Sonic game ever!
Am I the only one who hated the RSDK engine????
it ruins the gaemplay for me :/
@GoldenHedgy
How the fuck can a game engine ruin the gameplay for you? -_-
Wacky Workbench is one of the most easy and predictable zones once you understand how you are supposed to play it. Unlike most zones in Sonic games, all the danger and frustration in the stage is there because a non-killing gimmick: the bouncing floor.
What everybody does the first time they play Sonic CD (and what all of us did back in the day) is run right, hit the floor, go up without knowing where are you going, hope not to get hit, and most times, get to a dead end, where you must fight a way back down, only to hit the floor, etc. That´s what makes it annoying.
You have to think that the floor it´s like a spike floor, and use the various platforms to get where you want. There are just a few parts in both acts where you must use the floor to advance, so you shouldn´t use it unless there´s no other way or you just know what are you doing. If you screw it and you get bounced up, you must go down slowly, and try to look at the nearest platform by looking down if you need it. And never touch the floor if the entire background is screaming at you “the electric hazards are being activated”.
Yeah, most good players don´t do this, but it´s because they already know the zone and they know where are they going after each bounce. If you have trouble with the zone, try doing this.
@kmetalmind
Well, I’ve learned to use that method, but it does bring up the main issue with the game for me, which is waayyy too much platforming, and little-to-no speed sections. I doubt too many people find WW difficult, just tedious.
The only difficult part is travelling through time in the zone which took me several lives to actually manage, and then there was destroying the robot teleporter which I got by fluke actually.
Little Planet really has to be the bounciest place in gaming lol
While I still consider S3&K the definitive Genesis era Sonic title, Sonic CD will always hold a special place in my heart simply for its unconventional design and ideas. Replaying it during this latest re-release has been a great reminder to what the strengths and weaknesses of the title are. Foremost is the love it or hate it non-linear level design, which is purposeful (after all so much of the game its about exploration and not all corners need give rewards).
Love it or hate it, at 5 dollars there is little excuse to skip it, especially with HD and widescreen support and Christians involvement. The better Sonic CD does, the higher chance we’ll see sega let him tackle another project.
Good review. Oh, and I also despise Wacky Workbench (but at the same time, I applaud its vertically unconventional design).
@SSJSonicXX14
I’m specifically talking about level design. There are a LOT of places in Sonic CD where a spring will send you directly in to a bed of spikes on the ceiling or flying in to an enemy. The only way to avoid them is to know ahead of time where the spikes are. “I haven’t memorized the level yet” isn’t really a player error, and it’s something Sonic CD requires more and more of the further in to the game you get.
And boy, does Sonic CD love beds of spikes. They’re on ceilings, they’re on walls, they pop out of floors at all angles (most notably in Collision Chaos, where spike-mounted blocks will pop out of the floor behind you to discourage backtracking). Sonic CD has more spikes-per-pixel than any other pre-2000 Sonic game.
16:9 and Sonic CD’s camera still doesn’t help at times, either. Strong art direction or not, there’s plenty opportunity for some enemies to blend in to the background , making them difficult to see at higher speeds (especially when there are places that have at least 4 enemies on screen together, plus projectiles they might be firing and whatnot). And that’s not counting scenarios in places like Tidal Tempest where I was sprung up a shaft directly in to a bee enemy that was basically placed over the mouth of the shaft in what was more or less an unavoidable position given how fast I was moving vertically.
Sonic CD Re-release: 10 out of 10 for me.
You may have guessed that I like this game (hence my name). We all have our own personal favourite Sonic games and style of game play. For me though Sonic CD is best sonic game I have ever played with the exception of Sonic 3&K.
The level design of Sonic CD is brillant. Amazingly indepth for a 1993 product which was arguably the true sequel to Sonic 1. Wacky Workbench (whist very frustrating at times) is really inivative, compared to the mega-drive titles.
I prefer exploring to all out speed. You can still move fast as Sonic (as it should always be). I love the ‘peel-out’ gimmick.
The massive and stunning replay value for quite a small game is staggering. The time travel gimmick allows you to expore 4 different version of a level crammed into 10 minutes. Can you find all the extra lives, all the rings, the robot making machine and the Metal Sonic hologram in 10 minutes? So much replay value.
The fact that you can switch between each soundtrack is great. Playing as Tails makes exploring easier. Tails can fly and SWIM. The special stages is such a cool design. Whilst very hard, if your time runs low just keep picking up the blue ufo that appears in the middle and in theory you can keep going forever.
The boss designs are unique and highly enjoyable. Is it just me or is creating a good future and then playing through the ‘blue’ good future levels, while listening to really uplifting music so much fun.
In the re-release you can now collect more than 9 lives. It always inritated me in the prveious version that 9 lives was the max. In my most recent playthrough I finished the game with 80 lives. Can you reach 99 lives? Maybe with Tails.
This game may not be perfect but for me it is Sonic & SEGA at their very best. Sonic CD is massively superior to Sonic 4 Ep1 (even though I liked Sonic 4 Ep1 in part. Sonic CD is a unique and wonderful product. Maybe Sonic 4 Ep2 will learn from Sonic CD (fingers crossed).
Sonic CD definitely has the worst levels and gameplay of the Genesis platformers, but this port is just so good.
I’ve never really cared much for CD either. I have never played it before now, as I got the iOS port, but even after playing it, I don’t see the brilliance. It’s a great game, but not the cream of the crop in my opinion.
Rocking out to Quartz Quadrant though, that’s fun.
I to agree that Knuckles Chaotix, SegaSonic Arcade Should be re-released and rebuilt from the ground up, Especially as SEGA seem to be hyping up the ‘Rise of Metal Sonic’ KC is deffo a continuation of S3&K as the game takes place after the events of that game, They can also (like CD 2011) include SONIC & TAILS as unlockable playable characters polish some of the colouring (knuckles always looked to pinky to me)
SegaSonic would be like a real big present tbh I know alot of fans are 50/50 on it but its a chance for a whole generation to play it.
I think the ADVANCE series might not make it to PSN etc as it was NINTENDO exclusive wasnt it?
I hope it supports 4:3 screens. Getting it later some time this week hopefully and I don’t have a 16:9, widescreen games are harder to see sometimes on academy-ratio TVs.
Wacky Workbench is my favorite level in the whole game, especially the music.
And am I the only one who prefers the Sonic CD physics to the Mega Drive ones? But then again, the only real difference is the Spin Dash, but I can just use Super Peel Out for that.
@Stephen
After playing Sonic CD so many times (Sega CD, Gamecube, PC), it’s easy for me to tell the difference.
It could be because of the new engine or Sega glitched the game itself but the re-release have some glitches that it never have had before. For example the very first stage, Palmtree Panic. I remember going through the tunnel after passing the first PAST sign. it was enough for me to time travel but in this re-release, turns out that tunnel isn’t so useful anymore. It turns out I need waaaaaaay more space just to time travel. Speed isn’t important anymore.
Also for some reason I’m going through the enemies and some spikes once in a while. No I’m not even time traveling at those moments. I’m just running through or even walking through and thinking I might run into an enemy, but I go right through. It’s one of those WTF moments.
I know I may sound nitpicky but after trying the re-release myself, the gameplay is different for me.
I don’t know who is this Christian Whitehead guy, but if it’s because that his engine made the game that glitch then I’m not supportive.
The re-release should just re-use the game like they did before along with adding Tails, soundtracks and that’s it. No engine/physics tweaks.
@Knuckles Chaotix,
The addition of the Sonic 2 style spindash is a nice option. Personally I prefer the Sonic CD physics. The super peel-out looks really cool (the figure of eight) and the short bursts of speed you get is more appropriate for the Sonic CD style gameplay. The Sonic CD style spindash is okay even if it takes two seconds to charge up. It still works fine. The level design some of the best ever seen in Sonic 2d game.
@SSjSonic
Actually, I see what he means by those issues. While they obviously don’t justify the errors found in the recent portable games, they are indeed present in CD. There are springs that will send you flying straight into enemies; that made me really, really frustrated in places like Collision Chaos. The level design is also a bit… strange in some parts. I remember actually getting stuck in Stardust Speedway and not being able to go on, so I reset the console. Diagonal springs and flippers were quite glitchy in the original (the diagonal springs won’t always send you diagonally). And it was a headache to gain enough speed for enough time to time travel.
To be honest, I enjoyed Advance and maybe even Rush more than CD, but it’s still a very good game with much better music and graphics.
@Knuckles Chaotix
If you look reeeeallly closely, you’ll notice that Sonic seems to accelerate slower, and then go faster in CD, making it much harder to slope-jump (rolling up a diagonal slope, then jumping to gain extra height)
In Metallic Madness Zone 1 there is a glitch where you time travel to the future using two very close springs and once your in the future you are just spinning and cannot ever move. At least all you need to do go to the main menu and start that act (zone) again rather than restart the whole game.
Just completed CD as Tails. Got 103 lives. At 99 when you get another life in changes to 100 but you can only see 00. I checked, if you loose a life at 00 (100) it then goes back to 99. So you can definitely get over a 100 lives.
Also, what is the game ‘Knuckles Chaotix’ like? I have never played it. Has it got good graphics, good gameplay?
@Steve
It got good graphics, but gameplay, well its meh.
Wacky Workbech is personally my favorite stage. It’s also probably the easiest stage in a sonic game that I’ve played for that matter. I found Sonic 1 to be a more frustrating experience especially with Scrap Brain Zone.
Yay spinball!
also sonic cd… i think i perfer sonic 3d blast over original sonic cd x) lol. i perfer the dreamcast era 
heroes hd please! the best megadrive sonic has to be sonic 2 or sonic 1 in my opinion… cd is like.. 4th best or something.
atleast theres no boost
@blueblur
Jesus Christ, shit up about the fucking boost!
Knuckles Chaotix is like the worst Sonic game ever.
^ Sonic 2006, dude. Sonic 2006. (and the GBA port ofthe Genesis game)
How’s the audio quality?
The Sega CD was from an era where “CD” was still considered synonymous with “music”, and used full-on Redbook audio. Love or hate the music, the presentation quality was fantastic.
I assume this release compresses the audio. How noticeable is it?
@Thad
I didn’t notice any at all, really, but I’m also the kind of guy who’s fine with 128kbps MP3s.
I definitely recall that enemy over the spring in Tidal Tempest. Sonic CD’s stage design was a lot of trial and error. I didn’t see quite as much of that in Sonic 2 or Sonic 3 & Knuckles (though they were present as well). Wacky Workbench will be a major pain in tackling the stuff unlocked through Time Attack, as will Collision Chaos Zone 3. Sonic would sometimes go through the flippers, messing up what would otherwise be a rapid ascension to te top of the pinball table.
I liked the level design in the Advance and Rush games–but I will say that they are quite different from the classic games; you can’t jump straight into these titles with the mindset of the classic era’s games and expect it to function the same.
I must also be weird in saying that I liked Sonic Advance 2 the best of the Advance titles, and I prefer Sonic Rush Adventure over Sonic Rush and Sonic Colors DS. (I haven’t picked up Sonic Generations 3DS yet, so I can’t compare it to that.) They were the most fun to replay; I’d go on to say they were based around replaying the games more than the first time through. Blizzard Peaks Act 1 was annoying though, as Sonic on a snowboard essentially meant limited controls. (I disliked the snowboarding in Sonic 3′s Ice Cap for the same reason.)
@ Ophelia
Sonic Advance 2 its also my favorite portable Sonic as well as one of my favorite Sonic titles, so you’re not the only one!
Thanks for this excellent review. I didn’t know the game was ported from the ground up like that. I did know they had to expand the screen for wide and that it wasn’t stretched — it makes me wish more 16-bit and 8-bit games might get this option (if it works). In the case of Sonic CD, it does. In fact, I think I like it better wide.
SCD always seemed to have a really strange surrealistic world to it that felt very “Sega” to me. Perhaps it’s just nostalgia speaking because I was pretty young when I had my Sega CD, but there was just a certain magic to it, even if the levels were frustrating (I never beat it). I remember the Gamefan controversy as I was an avid reader of them back then. I thought they were a little harsh to Spencer, but I like both soundtracks.
This recent re-release is something that’s got me back into Sonic. I feel a little old, but what the hey. Makes me even want to get a Wii for Sonic Colors, because that looks like the best 3D Sonic (even better than Generations). Would love to play through them all now and see if the critics were right.
@A:
“There are springs that will send you flying straight into enemies; that made me really, really frustrated in places like Collision Chaos. ”
That’s why it’s called “Collision Chaos”
@Ophelia and Viking
I was surprised to learn how much dislike there is for Advance 2. It’s easily the best of the series, in my book. 1 was okay and 3′s not even worth playing (again, imo), but 2 was delightful!
@Matt
Colors is SO much better than generations, as on overall package. Highly recommend.
@ushroM
Yeah, yeah, I know. Was just being hyperbolic. Chaotix is still awful though. Labyrinth awful.